The present invention relates generally to headgear, and more particularly, to headgear which includes a picture retaining pocket for visually displaying a picture, photograph or the like inserted therein.
The wearing of hats, by both children and adults alike, has become increasingly prevalent over the years. One very popular type of hat is the baseball cap. The popularity of such caps can be attributed to their relatively low price, their ability to protect the wearer's eyes from sunlight and rain and their availability in numerous styles.
Baseball hats are often adorned with stitched or printed names, logos, pictures, etc. A problem with these hats is that the purchaser cannot modify the message or picture on the hat. If the purchaser wants to obtain a hat with a personalized message, picture or the like, he or she must have such a hat custom made. This can be somewhat expensive. Additionally, since the logo, picture or the like cannot be altered, the hats are often no longer worn or are disposed of if the owner's fondness for the particular message changes.
In recognition of the limitations of existing headgear, various attempts have been made to provide a hat displaying a message, logo or symbol that can be readily changed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,043, discloses a hat that has interchangeable patches that can be selectively attached thereto. The patches are attached by hook and loop type fasteners, adhesive or other fastening means. A drawback with this hat and patch system is that the wearer of the hat only has a limited number of patches to chose from. More specifically, the patches are pre-printed or prestitched with the logos or phrases that can be attached to the hat.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,253,368 shows a cap with an erasable writing surface attached to its crown. The wearer of the hat can write any desired message on the writing surface. This patent, however, is not adapted to removably display pictures or photographs. Moreover, this patent requires that an eraser and writing implement be available in order to inscribe the desired message.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,803,829 discloses a cap having a vertically disposed band extending around the periphery thereof. The vertically disposed band has several photograph retaining pockets. The band is not adapted to retain more than one picture at a time. Additionally, the slots for receiving the photographs are located on the exterior of the band instead of being hidden on the inside surface of the cap.